The Claiming of Sasha [Panther Cove 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (13 page)

“So?” Julia was practically jumping up and down.

She knew what she was asking. “They’re wonderful.” Sasha clasped Julia’s hand. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you doing this. It’s so important to give them a good impression of the town. I so want them to stay.”

“I know. I felt so bad when those two assholes came out of the bathroom. While they looked like shit, with blood on their lips and their faces scratched, they were bragging how they bested a tiger shifter.”

“Seriously? Did people believe them?” Her palms sweated. Getting confirmation that shifters existed would be a terrible blow to Panther Cove.

“Hell no.”

She blew out a breath. “Good.” She hoped that if some of the men embraced the Texas boys, maybe the other loners in town would do the same.

* * * *

Danny was thrilled to be able to talk to these men about their role in keeping the world safe. “So tell me about this Sword group. The man running the bed-and-breakfast, Basel Desnor, actually tried to get us to meet some guy named Gastron.”

Breck stepped closer. “Gastron is one bad dude. Last year, he and his gang drove to Richmond, Virginia and planted a bomb in a mall. Thanks to a quick thinking guard who happened to see them and call 911, the explosion never happened. If it had, hundreds would have been injured if not killed.”

Danny scrunched up his face. “Fuck.”

“You got that right.”

When Trace came over, Danny had to tell him about their close call. “Breck was just saying that Gastron, that dude Basel wanted us to meet, is pure evil.”

“I’m glad we didn’t agree to meet him.”

Daven shook his head. “I’m just saying you should consider staying away from that bed-and-breakfast for the rest of your stay. I wouldn’t put it past any of The Sword to kidnap you.”

Every muscle tensed. “For real?”

“Absolutely. Let me tell you what they did in Philadelphia.” Breck first told them about Jen’s close call and then how The Sword went so far as to recruit humans so that they could infiltrate police departments and the FBI without detection. “While we were trying to stop a bombing, they ambushed us and shot us up pretty bad.”

Danny checked out both men, but they seemed to have repaired quite well. “Are these attacks prevalent in the States?”

“Too frequent. The Sword also has a large presence overseas. We were led to believe that the bombing of the World Trade Center was orchestrated by the tiger shifters.”

This was a lot to take in. “No wonder a lot of people freaked when they detected our status.”

Hunter and Derek came over to them and offered them each a beer. “You two look thirsty.”

Danny took the proffered drink, popped the top, and guzzled it down. The whole concept of The Sword was very disturbing.

Hunter motioned with his can. “I have a proposal for you two.”

That caught Danny’s interest. “What?”

“Could I convince you two to spar with some of my men?”

Holy fuck
. “I’d love to.” He didn’t have to glance at his brother to sense the tension rolling off him.

“Why?” Trace stepped forward an inch.

“Are you kidding? To fight with two real tiger shifters would be invaluable to us. We spar with each other so much that we know each other’s moves. In fact, when I duel with Derek, I know what his next move is going to be. That’s not the case with tiger shifters.”

The chance to work with the best and learn how to fight in his shifted form appealed to him. “I’m in.” He turned to Trace. “You?”

His brother shrugged. “Sure. Why not? It might be fun.”

Adrenaline spiked through his blood. He didn’t know what had gotten into Trace, but he wasn’t going to complain.

“Say tomorrow at ten?”

“We’ll be there.”

The party had been a huge success. Sasha had worked hard to stay out of the men’s way. Both Trace and Danny blended in better than she dared hope. When the Noble brothers left, and Kendis claimed she was ready to drop, Sasha was really disappointed. She loved how they all got along.

As soon as the last person was out the door, she collapsed onto the sofa. Both of her men sat on either side.

“That was the best party ever, darlin’.” Danny kissed her cheek.

“I’m glad you enjoyed yourselves. I heard Hunter invite you two up to Panther Cove.”

Trace rubbed his thumb over her palm. “They really seemed to need us to spar with them. They mentioned they can read each other’s thoughts and know what comes next.”

She grinned. “That’s why it’s hard to get in a realistic workout. So, you both are willing to help?” She couldn’t have been happier.

Trace leaned back. “Surprisingly, I am. I’ve spent my life working on the ranch and never took the time to enlist in the service or anything. This gives me a chance to make a difference.”

“I think that’s wonderful.” As much as she wanted them to stay the night, she realized they were probably eager to get their car and go back to their hotel. “Do you need me to drive you back to town?”

Danny twisted in his seat. “While we don’t want to impose, Hunter thought it might not be safe to stay at the bed-and-breakfast.” From the way his mouth kept lifting, he wasn’t worried about other shifters, but he wanted an excuse to stay with her. She was thrilled.

“Absolutely you shouldn’t go back there. Why, if Gastron got wind you were helping The Shield, he might retaliate. You should definitely stay with me.” Thinking about coming home to them after a hard day’s work and indulging in all sorts of fantasies had her pussy clenching.

“If you’re sure, we’d love to. When you go to work tomorrow, maybe you’d be kind enough to drop us off at your store.”

“No problem. Do you want me to ask Hunter or Derek to escort you to the bed-and-breakfast to pick up your stuff?” Danny laughed and Trace huffed. “Guess that would be a no.” She’d make sure they called her as soon as they got their luggage out of their room.

She stood and waved to all the empty beer bottles, used glasses, and half eaten trays of food. “We can leave the stuff until tomorrow. I’m beat.”

Both Danny and Trace jumped up. “You go on in, and we’ll take care of this mess.”

No one had ever offered to clean up after a party. If she weren’t so exhausted, she wouldn’t have agreed. “You don’t have to do that.”

Danny pulled her close and kissed her with all the sweetness that was inside him. “We want to.” He patted her butt. “Now scoot.”

“I’ll be ready and waiting just as soon as you come in.”

“Go.”

As she trudged to her bedroom, a smile claimed her face. While she believed the men needed to get to Texas, she was hoping they’d want to return.

* * * *

He and Trace were a well-oiled machine when it came to cleaning up after a party. Trace would take care of the trash while he put the perishables away. “It’s a good thing Sasha went to bed or else I’d have been distracted.” All night he’d been itching to suck on her nipples and lick her pussy. The downside to that wonderful idea was that his cock never went down.

“I hear ya.”

Danny still wasn’t convinced Trace would come with him to Panther Cove tomorrow. “What made you change your mind about being part of The Shield?”

Trace opened another trash bag and dumped in the leftover chips. “Never said I’d join the damn thing. We’re going home in a week, remember?”

He knew it would take a lot of work to convince his brother this was where they needed to be. “But you’re willing to spar?”

Trace shrugged. “Sure. I can use the exercise.” He patted his belly. “Not working the ranch has made me fat.”

That got a laugh out of Danny. Trace was all muscle. “What do you think our chances are against a panther?”

“I had no trouble taking on those two at the bar.”

He put the lid on the bowl containing the leftover fruit and shoved it into the refrigerator. “Those dudes were out of shape, and Hunter’s men are well trained.”

Trace tied off the garbage bag and stacked it next to the other two. “Then I guess I’ll get my ass whooped.”

“You like the challenge, don’t you?”

“Always.”

After Danny wiped down the counters, he thought the place looked quite good. “Ready for some shut-eye?”

Trace laughed. “Not unless a certain lady wants to have some fun.”

Danny grinned, glad that Sasha had gotten to him. Too bad when they reached her room, she was sprawled naked in the middle of the bed sound asleep. As much as he wanted to make love with her again, he bet her pussy would be too sore for another round. So as not to disturb her, he shifted and sprawled out on the floor, and Trace did the same. Tomorrow just might change his life for good.

* * * *

After they picked up their car in front of Sasha’s store, they quickly grabbed their gear from the bed-and-breakfast and told their host they’d found another place to stay. Desnor didn’t seem pleased, but since he and Trace weren’t staying for long, he probably didn’t want to cause a full-scale war. Given Danny didn’t ask for his money back, Desnor really had no good reason to gripe.

They’d debated saying they’d needed to fly home sooner than planned, but if they visited a bar and a tiger shifter spotted them, there might be a confrontation. Until he honed his fighting skills, Danny wasn’t ready to tangle with any Sword member.

When they got to Panther Cove, they called Hunter’s house and he buzzed them in. They didn’t know where Hunter lived, but Danny figured meeting them at the training center made sense. Inside, the two trainers, Bantum and Noble Jackson, were with two men they didn’t recognize. The Jackson brothers must have warned the men they were going to train with the new arrivals because Danny didn’t sense any hostility from the men.

Both he and Trace turned around as soon as they sensed another shifter enter the building. It was Hunter who held out his hand.

“Welcome. You ready to help us out?”

Danny appreciated that Hunter was being gracious. “I think it’s the other way around. Since we never knew anything about shifters before this trip, we only goofed around with each other.”

“You two are cowboys. I bet you can wrestle a cow.”

Danny laughed. “That would be Trace’s job, but put me in a bar fight, and I can hold my own.”

Hunter looked over at the two men who were lifting weights. “Hey, Casius and Hercules. Come on over.”

The men were giants, and Danny wondered if maybe they’d made a mistake in agreeing to fight them. After the introductions, Hunter suggested they all go outside. “Here are the rules. Don’t kill each other. Got it?”

Danny glanced over at Trace who seemed to be relishing the chance to beat the shit out of someone. He bet his brother would be in for a rude awakening with these two muscle-bound behemoths.

As soon as Hunter stepped back, the giants shifted. It didn’t take any encouragement from Hunter for Trace and him to shift. Before Danny could even come up with a plan, Trace charged the larger of the two panthers. Not wanting to stand by while his brother had all the fun, he circled the other shifter whose ear was slightly floppy. It looked like the guy got injured in a bad fight.

Floppy charged, and Danny was able to duck the attack. He heard, rather than saw, Trace injure his prey. Somehow Danny seemed better equipped to get lower to the ground than his partner and managed to swipe at the panther’s front leg. For a moment he had the advantage until the hulk landed on Danny’s back, nearly crushing him to the ground.

Only because he remembered how to get out this position from when a calf had gotten the best of him was he able to escape from underneath. Instinct took over, and he bared his teeth and attacked the man’s flank. Since a tiger’s teeth are the largest of all the big cats, he had the advantage. As soon as he sunk his fangs into his opponent, he withdrew, not wanting to do serious harm.

Floppy charged and swiped his sharp claws down Danny’s furry face. Pain shot straight to his gut, but that only made him want to fight harder. They danced around each other a few times before Danny shot forward, keeping low to the ground, and clawed Floppy’s legs.

A loud whistle blasted his ears. All four of them stopped. Hercules and Casius shifted. He and Trace did, too.

While his cheek burned, the other cuts weren’t severe. One glance at Trace made him proud. Hercules looked to be the loser.

Hunter was all smiles. “You guys were amazing. I loved how you were able to get low and attack the legs.”

Casius held out his hand and shook Danny’s. “It was a privilege to fight you.” He glanced over at his brother. “Not being able to know your next move made me pay more attention.”

Hunter wrapped an arm around each of their shoulders. “I can see us panthers could benefit from your expertise.”

Hercules nodded. “Trace, you are an outstanding fighter.”

Danny couldn’t tell how much was to build their confidence and how much was real, but he certainly enjoyed sparring with them. It felt good to contribute in a meaningful way.